n f. (O.Ir. forfess, from for and 2 feis, see Thurn.
Thurn. Zu Ir. Hss. i 54
, and Meyer,
Wortk. 214
).
n
p.
forbossa,
LL 189c50
.
foirfessa,
BB 17a56
. The
original sense seems to have been `
keeping a watch by
night
'; sometimes used as cogn. acc. of foaid:
fiu [Cú Chulainn] forfes fer Falchae,
ZCP viii 564.7
(cf.
fiibthir Falchaoe
feis,
565.9
, and:
fifatsa forsna slógaib,
LU 6312
). The
strict meaning appears to be
keeping a hostile outlook or
watch (on a person or place), spending the night in camp
(against a foe), passing into that of beleaguering, laying
siege (with FOR of obj.):
boí dano Eochaid .ix. mbliadna
hi forbais for Bri léith,
Dinds. 3
=
BB 353a3
.
a mbúi do
míleduib C. ic forbhais forro,
CCath. 689
. co port na hindsi
a roib rí Érenn guna sluagaib ac forbáis ara mac (the king
was on the mainland, the son on the island),
ZCP xiii 220.8
.
tainic ri Erenn ... a forbu[i]s for Ath Cliath,
Expugn. Hib.
§ 31
.
gabais forbais for Luimneach,
§ 69
.
sluaged ... la Niall
... a nOirgiallaib d'f.¤ ar Brian Mag M.,
Ann. Conn. 1368 § 13
.
ro dibraicedh ... he i cathraig for a raibi ic forbhais,
Marco P.
34
.
cath Atha Cliath for Gallaib la M. ... ┐ forbuis in duin
forro iar sin fri fichit aidchi,
RC xvii 346
(Tig. = ro gabh f.¤
an dúine forra iar dáin, etc.
AFM 988
). Cf.
ni gebthar forbaes
fort linni,
LU 1569
=
forbasi,
IT ii2 209a
(LL).
dosnicbad
allmaraigh dar muir ┐ gebtait f.¤ foraib,
RC ix 24 § 27
.
feachtus docuaidh Cir mac Dair | do triall forbuse i nEdail,
BB
289b8
(
IT iii 69
).
? Abs.
a mb[u]í ic forbhais,
CCath. 693
(but forro is
perhaps to be supplied).
Encampment: i forbuis a n-ardchnoc ... osa cinn encamped on a high hill above them
RC xliii 58.9
.
suidhis i
bhforbhais nó i bhfoslongphort ann,
Keat. ii 4962
.
gabuid
sluaig na T. forbhuis hi Maunglay,
Marco P. 130
. f.¤ nae
trath for Siuir `to encamp for nine days'
Leb. Cert. 4.10
.
A
foray (?):
co ndernatar ... f.¤ isna Tuathaib ... cur gabsat
crecha mora ┐ airgne,
Ann. Conn. 1306.4
. Cf.
as iad tra
ba ferr battar ar an ff.¤ sin,
AFM 1306
(= ba ferr do bai arna
crechaib sin, Ann. Conn. ALC).
forbuse cocaid ┐ esrain
do fas,
Ann. Conn. 1224.13
.
A besieging party (?): ar marb Brian do Gallaib don
[ḟ]orbas sin (v.l. don forbais sin), `the foreigners of that
garrison'
Cog. 60.20
(during that siege ?).
A siege, esp. in titles of stories:
issiat so na prímsceóil
.i. togla ┐ tāna ... ┐ fessa [┐] na foirfessa,
BB 17a56
.
F.¤ Fer
Fálga, Forbais Etair, Forbais Dromma Damgaire,
LL
189c50
. im Blathnait ... tucad a f.¤ fer Failgi `who was
carried off from the siege of'
Ériu ii 20 § 1
.
ar mbeith ar
tí airgthe an oiléin dóibh i bhforbhais bhfear bhFalgha,
Keat. ii 3448
.
in triar ... ro anacht Cú Chulainn hi f.¤ Fer
Fálga,
BDD 131
.